Rechargeable battery pack for Control+ hub on Kickstarter

I don't own any Control+ models, but I love the idea of a rechargeable battery for the system. Good on them for seeing the need and finding a solution that's not absurdly expensive.

Li-Ion? Why not Li-Poly instead?

@ambr said:
"There is already a Lego Education WeDo 45302 rechargable battery, but needs to be purchased through an Educational distributor. So a powered up version shouldn't be too onerous for Lego to produce eventually, as worried about reliability and safety with 3rd parties producing rechargeable battery packs.

Personally, I would really like the smaller powered up train battery hub 88009 to have a lithium battery similar to the discontinued rechargeable Lego train battery box 8878, even if this pushes the price to over $100!"

Spike Prime and the Mindstorms hub have rechargeable batteries, both are part of the Powered Up ecosystem. Could LEGO easily produce rechargeable inserts for the Technic hub and for 88009? Absolutely! Will they do it? We have no idea, as apparently they have no interest in producing additional components to the system that are not sold in a set...

@legoman67 said:
"Be very careful pledging for this battery pack on Kickstarter. I am also a photographer and together with thousands of other backers we got scammed big time on a camera battery pack.

You can find everthing about this on the internet and social media:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6D-lF0bstA

Kickstarter didn't communicate or help any of the backers and ignored their own guidelines. Knowing that this was a scam from the beginning and not calculated a risk of a kickstarter fundraising project.

The reviews on Trustadvisor are also not lying 89% is giving Kickstarter a bad review. Choice is yours but don't say you weren't warned.

In case the project becomes succesful the battery will come to the market anyway at a much cheaper price without any risks. "

Is this kickstarter the same company/people as said above?

For the majority of stationary models, e.g. robotic arms, fairground rides, GBC, electric train track etc, why not skip the rechargeable part altogether and just power your motors or track directly from a interface similar to the Lego Control center 8904, plugged into a 5V USB socket?

@michael4me said:
" @speedorz4ever said:
"Sorry, nope. Electronic components are not an amateur’s game.

Still annoyed by I-Brix…."

I am also very disappointed by the I-Brix fiasco and the money lost. It makes it hard to trust Kickstarter again."

What happened with i-brix? I wasn't into Lego at the time and can't see much online about this.

Edit: just found the final kickstarter update,which says project failed. It sounds like a lot of people lost money.

Like others stated earlier, not after i brix. Fool me once…you know the rest.

As if Powered-Up wasn't a big enough disaster in the first place, here comes Kickstarter...

@ambr said:
"For the majority of stationary models, e.g. robotic arms, fairground rides, GBC, electric train track etc, why not skip the rechargeable part altogether and just power your motors or track directly from a interface similar to the Lego Control center 8904, plugged into a 5V USB socket?"

This is what I would like to see as well, a directly powered adaptor for PU bricks. I think it would help expand the use of PU quite a bit. PU, especially when programed using PyBricks has a lot of potential.

Sure you could use a rechargeable battery like this and just leave it constantly plugged in but that is a poor and expensive solution.

I also feel that targeting the smaller PU brick, and maybe the train community specifically might have been a better starting point for this fundraiser.

@PDelahanty:
If they’re rechargeable packs for a system that’s popular and not incredibly rare, 3rd party that can be produced in bulk up front, and on demand or in small batches later on, would allow people to keep using that system for decades. And unless they seriously examine what the AFOL community wants in powered bricks, 9v and PF will be used until there’s nothing left.

@Eaglefan344:
Cheaper and more convenient to buy? Sure. More convenient to use? Not a chance. My LUG did a display that lasted all December, where the layout was guaranteed to be staffed by the venue. They had to be able to operate and swap out engines, because we had three other displays up at the same time and didn’t have enough 9v track. All they had to do was swap out the engines, pull a panel off the top of each one, hit both power buttons, and plug in a power cord to charge the spent battery. They did not have to crack open the engines to extract the battery boxes, open them up, swap out batteries (making sure they pointed in the right direction), reassemble the whole mess, and then get the train up and running again. A lot of these people are retirees who volunteer at the museum, and none that I know of consider themselves to be AFOLs. If any train cars get destroyed, they try to collect all the pieces, stash them somewhere out of the way, and inform us that someone has to come in and put stuff back together again. We couldn’t run a PF layout there if someone had to stop by every time the batteries needed to be swapped out.

The other thing to remember is that the PF rechargeable pack had a built-in regulator. Neither the AAA nor AA boxes did. If you wanted the ability to adjust the speed on those, you needed more equipment. I don’t think there was a hard-wired system, so you probably needed an IR receiver, an IR controller (of the correct style), and more batteries for the controller.

Batteries are pretty much a commodity nowadays, most of them are designed and manufactured by specialized Chinese companies, like most of consumer electronics. Just send them your drawings and you'll get your custom batteries in a matter of weeks, they got incredibly efficient. Good luck doing the same in the West...
All these guys have to do is to raise money for the batch, and that's it. If they want to design and manufacture the batteries themselves, they're just crazy.

@mavndad said:
" @legoman67 said:
"Be very careful pledging for this battery pack on Kickstarter. I am also a photographer and together with thousands of other backers we got scammed big time on a camera battery pack.

You can find everthing about this on the internet and social media:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6D-lF0bstA

Kickstarter didn't communicate or help any of the backers and ignored their own guidelines. Knowing that this was a scam from the beginning and not calculated a risk of a kickstarter fundraising project.

The reviews on Trustadvisor are also not lying 89% is giving Kickstarter a bad review. Choice is yours but don't say you weren't warned.

In case the project becomes succesful the battery will come to the market anyway at a much cheaper price without any risks. "

Is this kickstarter the same company/people as said above?"

No Kickstarter is a Page where you can list Projects to receive funding.
It's like Shark Tank but the consumers pay for "perks" instead of Company shares.
The Perks can be different things but usually it involves receiving the product,
additional merchandise or discounts.

Sadly if the product never sees the light of day the money is lost.
That can have many different reasons but it happens.

@michael4me said:
" @speedorz4ever said:
"Sorry, nope. Electronic components are not an amateur’s game.

Still annoyed by I-Brix…."

I am also very disappointed by the I-Brix fiasco and the money lost. It makes it hard to trust Kickstarter again."

ugh...Ibrix....smh

@Yardsale19X

and don't forget that most of the sets that were delivered by Brix were faulty with no ability to correct them. Wrong colors were sent to people and some of the lights didn't work.

@PurpleDave said:
"Li-Ion? Why not Li-Poly instead?"

Liion has a safer design, and we’ve already built some prototypes with lipoly batteries that are no better than the liion we use.

@PixelTheDragon said:
"The idea is good. Personally I’d think rechargeable batteries would produce less waste, so it’s strange LEGO has opted out of them for so long. It’s not like prices are getting any lower.

I do wonder why they went with Comic Sans as a font choice. I know that sounds nit picky, and it is, but it makes the whole thing look a bit like it’s trying too hard to be friendly. "

I can say that not only are we trying, we are really very friendly in deed :)

Aside from the risks associated with crowdfunding, something which is up to the individual investor to make a decision on, another factor to be considered is the possibility (likelihood?) that Lego will decide to change to yet another (incompatible and expensive ) power/control system in a year or two anyway...

@speedorz4ever said:
"Sorry, nope. Electronic components are not an amateur’s game.

Still annoyed by I-Brix…."

Hi,

I am Gergo, a member of Phondly.
I graduated as an electrical engineer in Hungary in 2003, and my great favorites have been electronic design and DIY projects ever since.
Tamás is the other member of Phondly.
He has many years of experience in the field of industrial design and mechanical structures and it is likely that if you are familiar with cycling, you have come across a couple of parts he has designed without even knowing about it.

@davejbur said:
"Aside from the risks associated with crowdfunding, something which is up to the individual investor to make a decision on, another factor to be considered is the possibility (likelihood?) that Lego will decide to change to yet another (incompatible and expensive ) power/control system in a year or two anyway..."

I don't think LEGO is a quick change company. It took 10 or more years to change from IR to bluetooth (PF to PU). But anyway, I think if someone already has a PU or PF system why throw them out because of a new LEGO system, that’s just not what it’s about.

@CCC said:
" @KisGergo said:
" @legoman67 said:
"Be very careful pledging for this battery pack on Kickstarter. I am also a photographer and together with thousands of other backers we got scammed big time on a camera battery pack.

You can find everthing about this on the internet and social media:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6D-lF0bstA

Kickstarter didn't communicate or help any of the backers and ignored their own guidelines. Knowing that this was a scam from the beginning and not calculated a risk of a kickstarter fundraising project.

The reviews on Trustadvisor are also not lying 89% is giving Kickstarter a bad review. Choice is yours but don't say you weren't warned.

In case the project becomes succesful the battery will come to the market anyway at a much cheaper price without any risks. "

Hi,

I am a member of Phondly who owns the project.
Why do you claim this is a scam?
I’ve been working on this project for a year and a half, and it’s really bad to hear it’s a scam for no real reason.
All our contacts are available online.
Please don't judge us before you talk to us."

The issue is you are using a crowdfunding site to sell items. Of course you are not the only company to do this. In the past numerous kickstarters have failed to deliver the products sold.

The issue is not with you, it is with crowd funding as a way of selling specific items. If you have faith in your product, you can sell the same product at the same prices and suffer the consequences if you do not deliver those products."

I understand your concerns but we choose kickstarter because we need financial support to go to production and I can tell you it is very hard to assess the market and prove it to an investor that it is worth it. So kickstarter is somehow for assessing the market and raising funds together.
there is also a big risk from my side, I have worked on this porject soo much that I would really feel sorry if the campaign wouldnt be a success

@michael4me said:
" @speedorz4ever said:
"Sorry, nope. Electronic components are not an amateur’s game.

Still annoyed by I-Brix…."

I am also very disappointed by the I-Brix fiasco and the money lost. It makes it hard to trust Kickstarter again."

Concur

@mavndad said:
" @legoman67 said:
"Be very careful pledging for this battery pack on Kickstarter. I am also a photographer and together with thousands of other backers we got scammed big time on a camera battery pack.

You can find everthing about this on the internet and social media:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6D-lF0bstA

Kickstarter didn't communicate or help any of the backers and ignored their own guidelines. Knowing that this was a scam from the beginning and not calculated a risk of a kickstarter fundraising project.

The reviews on Trustadvisor are also not lying 89% is giving Kickstarter a bad review. Choice is yours but don't say you weren't warned.

In case the project becomes succesful the battery will come to the market anyway at a much cheaper price without any risks. "

Is this kickstarter the same company/people as said above?"

I am Gergo from Phondly and no we are not the same company in fact, we have nothing in common

@PixelTheDragon said:
"The idea is good. Personally I’d think rechargeable batteries would produce less waste, so it’s strange LEGO has opted out of them for so long. It’s not like prices are getting any lower.

I do wonder why they went with Comic Sans as a font choice. I know that sounds nit picky, and it is, but it makes the whole thing look a bit like it’s trying too hard to be friendly. "

Comic Sans is a very dsylexia-friendly font, possibly that is why?

@Terreneflame said:
" @PixelTheDragon said:
"The idea is good. Personally I’d think rechargeable batteries would produce less waste, so it’s strange LEGO has opted out of them for so long. It’s not like prices are getting any lower.

I do wonder why they went with Comic Sans as a font choice. I know that sounds nit picky, and it is, but it makes the whole thing look a bit like it’s trying too hard to be friendly. "

Comic Sans is a very dsylexia-friendly font, possibly that is why?
"

Hi, we've already changed the Chalkboard font to a more accepted one, I hope this already wins you over. :)

@KisGergo:
I knew that Li-Poly weighs less and delivers more power for the same volume, and doesn’t degrade from just sitting on a shelf like Li-Ion, but hadn’t ever read anything citing safety issues specifically with Li-Poly before. I have had a few batteries swell, I’ve read about defective batteries causing phones to catch on fire, and I know that if the cells get punctured that can also be a fire hazard (but that last one should be less of an issue if it’s sealed in a plastic shell). Does that about cover it, or are there more issues that I wasn’t able to dig up?

Regarding some of the issues other commenters have raised, anyone can say anything and reassure you that they’re telling the truth. Scammers do it all the time. So do people who are honest to a fault. There’s really no way to tell them apart, short of hard evidence. Even that’s no always a reliable gauge, as there have been cases where long-time Bricklink sellers with stellar reputations suddenly collected payment for a large quantity of orders, closed up shop, and disappeared with the money.

As for speed of change, look at how long it took to ditch the RC Train system and roll out the first PF equipment. Look at the sheer variety of new and incompatible electronics systems they’ve rolled out since shutting down production of PF components. They were also designing and releasing new PF components for about half the system’s lifecycle, and they’re still not done replacing every PF component with a PU equivalent. So, by the time an electronics system is “complete”, there’s not as much life left as you’d expect based on the total span over which any components have been sold.

@Terreneflame:
I happen to be fond of Comic Sans because it’s the most effortlessly legible font I’ve been able to find. But I’m not a font-snob, so I don’t get offended by the total lack of pointless flourishes.

@KisGergo said:
" @Terreneflame said:
" @PixelTheDragon said:
"The idea is good. Personally I’d think rechargeable batteries would produce less waste, so it’s strange LEGO has opted out of them for so long. It’s not like prices are getting any lower.

I do wonder why they went with Comic Sans as a font choice. I know that sounds nit picky, and it is, but it makes the whole thing look a bit like it’s trying too hard to be friendly. "

Comic Sans is a very dsylexia-friendly font, possibly that is why?
"

Hi, we've already changed the Chalkboard font to a more accepted one, I hope this already wins you over. :)"

I was defending Comic Sans, what font is on your page doesnt bother me in the slightest :)